With Brussels Secretary of State Pascal Smet handing in his resignation on Sunday for his part in allowing an Iranian delegation and pro-war Russian officials to attend this year's Brussels Urban Summit, all eyes are now on Belgium’s Foreign Affairs Minister Hadja Lahbib (MR).
Newly released e-mails showed that Lahbib personally approved the attendance of the mayor of Tehran and the vice-mayor of the Russian city of Kazan during a phone call with Smet (Vooruit). The resulting scandal led to Smet stepping down on Sunday.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry – run by Lahbib – had previously recommended that Smet not invite Russian and Iranian officials in light of the international sanctions both face: Russia has been heavily sanctioned following its invasion of Ukraine; Iranian forces brutally repressed popular protests and had until recently illegally detained the Belgian aid worker Olivier Vandecasteele. Both states face international condemnation.
Given the political tensions that delegations from these nations might have created, Smet’s office agreed with the Foreign Affairs Ministry to try to disinvite the delegations from the Brussels Urban Summit. In spite of this, a phone call between Smet and Lahbib on 10 May resulted in the Russian and Iranian officials being granted visas, according to L'Echo.
Pointing fingers
In an e-mail from Smet’s office, the Brussels Secretary of State confirmed that “(Lahbib) had no problem with (the delegations) coming to Brussels.” In another e-mail, Smet claimed that Lahbib did not oppose their attendance “certainly on a technical level but also politically if I have understood correctly.”
Lahbib already defended herself in parliament on Thursday, arguing that Smet had put considerable pressure on her to allow both delegations to attend the summit. Smet denied her allegation.
However, as far as Belgium's foreign policy is concerned there is no doubt that this is the responsibility of Lahbib and only the Foreign Affairs Minister can approve visas.
While Smet resigned on Sunday "even if I didn't commit any personal fault," Lahbib is to face further scrutiny for her role in the affair. Opposition MPs have called for her to follow Smet in resigning. Flemish nationalist leader Bart De Wever (N-VA) was clear in stating that "she cannot remain in place."
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Furthermore, an online spat broke out between Lahbib’s party chief Georges-Louis Bouchez and the N-VA grandee Theo Francken. Bouchez sought to attribute the blame to the Brussels Government and accused Smet of having "made a mistake and therefore accepting the logical consequences."
Yet Francken was less convinced, asserting that "if Pascal Smet has to go, so does Hadja Lahbib. She issued the visas and her cabinet gave the go-ahead, which is a huge mistake."
Contacted by The Brussels Times, Lahbib's spokesperson stated that "the minister respects (Smet's) decision and is ready to answer all remaining questions at a parliamentary committee meeting on Wednesday."
Concerning Smet’s replacement, Vooruit party leader Conner Rousseau had to cut a trip to Italy short as he is expected to announce Brussels’ new Secretary of State on Monday.
